


Time Out!

by Lanceeselhombre



Series: Voltron Regression Stories [5]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Caregiver!Lance, Crying, I also gave Keith my leg issues because why not, Keith doesn’t have one but I’ll tag it bc it’s close enough, Keith is scared of being punished, Lance handles the situation well, M/M, Non-Sexual Age Play, Panic Attacks, Punishment, little!Keith
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-31
Updated: 2018-07-31
Packaged: 2019-06-19 04:08:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15501993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lanceeselhombre/pseuds/Lanceeselhombre
Summary: Keith let’s his temper slip while he’s playing with Pidge and gets put in a time out.





	Time Out!

**Author's Note:**

> Here’s some more age regression fluff for you guys! I’m hoping to be updating Regaining Myself soon but I’m still a bit too burnt out to continue the plot. 
> 
> Im getting there though :D

As a caregiver, Lance did his absolute best to make everyday fun-filled and happy for Keith. It was rewarding in itself to see the boy giggle in response to his efforts, especially when the laughter came after a bad day. He never liked seeing his baby upset or crying, and being able to cheer him up always made his day. 

 

Unfortunately, being a caregiver isn’t always rainbows and sunshine. Sometimes he had to discipline his baby and let him cry until it was over, as upsetting as it was. 

 

Disciplining Keith was especially hard, because as a child he’d never been punished correctly. His correction had always come out of anger or frustration, often ending without any kind of closure. So when Lance had to punish him for his behavior, he automatically assumed that his caregiver was angry with him, that he would yell and hit him. Lance would never do that, as he had proven several times already, but every time was still a battle. 

 

This time, Keith was being punished because he hit Pidge. She’d been playing with him on the kitchen floor while Hunk and Lance cooked, keeping him busy with building block towers until the meal was done. The two were having fun, that is until Pidge went to put the final piece on Keith’s tower for him and he slapped her hand away, wanting to do it himself. That in itself would have only earned him a talking-to and he would have had to apologize, but Keith also knocked his tower over as he slapped Pidge’s hand, and in his resulting anger he shoved her away, accidentally causing her to hit her head on the island. 

 

That called for a bit more punishment. Keith couldn’t push and hit people just because he was angry, and he needed to learn that. 

 

Dinner was done seconds after the incident, so Lance let the majority of his discipline wait until after they ate, but he made it clear that the boy would be getting what was coming to him afterwards and made him apologize for hurting Pidge. 

 

Keith, being the little ball of anxiety he was, refused to eat his dinner after that, too caught up in what was going to happen when they went to his caregiver’s room. That was fine, Lance knew his baby well enough to be confident that once the punishment was over he would want some food, so he asked Hunk to set some of the food aside for later. 

 

The caregiver ate his own meal quickly, wanting to get the ordeal over with. He put his dishes away and set Keith’s plate aside for Hunk to put away, then announced that he and Keith were heading back to their room for the night. He motioned for Keith to come with him, but the little didn’t want to stand up and walk on his own, so Lance patiently picked him up and carried him out of the dining room. 

 

Keith clung to the other’s shirt nervously while he was carried to his room, so anxious that there were already tears pooling in his eyes when Lance put him down. 

 

As much as he didn’t want to, Lance ignored his tears, knowing that comforting the child now would send him the wrong message. Just because he was scared didn’t mean he got out of his punishment. The caregiver gently curled a finger under the little’s chin, tilting his face up until they were looking each other in the eye. “Keith, listen to me.” He started, firm but gentle, knowing that he was going to stop doing so as soon as he heard the p-word. “I’m going to punish you for being mean to Pidge earlier.” 

 

And there were the waterworks. Before he could even say with what was going to happen, or assure him that after this short punishment was over the event would be forgotten, the boy burst into loud, frantic wails. Lance wanted nothing more than to hold him close and soothe his cries, but he simply steeled himself and continued in a steady voice. “Daddy isn’t mad at you, but it’s wrong to hit people. So I want you to stand in the corner for six minutes and think about what you did, okay?” He usually had his younger siblings stand in the corner for a length of minutes equal to their age, but mentally Keith was only about two, and twenty minutes was too long for an anxious little. He figured six was a good number. 

 

Keith, still sobbing, nodded. “I w-wuv you d-addy!” He cried as he tried to hug his caregiver, looking for a little comfort. 

 

Lance almost smiled at him, but quickly masked it with a practiced calm. “I know.” He said, acknowledging him without saying the same in return. That would come afterwards. For now, he turned the boy around and gave him a gentle nudge towards the corner of the room. “Six minutes.” He said to remind him, knowing that those few minutes would quickly turn to hours in the baby’s mind. 

 

The little obediently stepped closer to the corner and faced it, though his cries had not been silenced at all. They wouldn’t stop until the punishment was over, sadly. Lance always struggled to listen to him sob like that until the six minutes were over, but he knew he needed to do it. 

 

The brunette walked over to the chair in the room and sat down, setting a timer on his tablet so he would know when six minutes had elapsed. He looked over to Keith before he started it, wanting to make sure he was still doing what he was supposed to, and found that the boy was looking over to him, anxious that he might leave him here indefinitely. Lance understood his fear- he’d been told the story of the time that one of his foster parents left him in a corner all night- but still motioned for him to turn around with a flick of his finger. “The timer starts when you turn around.” He said. 

 

It took a moment for Keith to will himself to stare at the wall again, and Lance started the timer. To keep himself occupied until it went off, Lance picked up a book that he always kept around and started to read it. (He wasn’t actually reading it though, Keith’s crying was too loud and urgent for him to focus. He was really using it to cover the frown painting his face because his little’s distress.) 

 

Lance watched the timer closely, impressed to notice that this might be the first time that Keith made it through a punishment without causing him to stop the timer. Of course, right as he thought that, the little collapsed to his knees and wailed, eliciting a tired sigh from the caregiver. He stopped the timer and stood from his chair, placing the book face-down on the bedside table. 

 

The sound of his footsteps caused the baby to cry louder, expecting a hit for his disobedience. “Tired!” He blubbered in an attempt to justify himself, scared that not having a good enough excuse would extend his punishment. 

 

The brunette gently grabbed him by his upper arms and pulled him to his feet. “As soon as this is over you can rest, Keith.” He assured the child, knowing that his complaining wasn’t just a facade to get out of the corner. He had a problem with his leg that caused him to become tired quickly when he was standing in place. “It’s almost over.” 

 

Keith cried as he was set down again but obediently stayed on his feet, not wanting to anger his caregiver. He shifted his weight to his good leg and put his hands on the wall to balance himself, trying to make it easier for himself to endure the rest of his time out. Lance let him, knowing he would crumble to the floor again without the support. 

 

The teen reset the timer to three minutes and started it again. He usually reset it to the same time as when they started, but his baby was hurting. He understood that his body had a limit that made it difficult for him to stand through the one punishment that wouldn’t send him spiraling into complete panic. Besides, the little wouldn’t know the difference between six and three minutes. 

 

Thankfully, Keith stayed on his feet for the last three minutes. As soon as the timer beeped Lance shut it off and patted his leg for the boy to sit in his lap. “Keith, come here.” He said, allowing the baby out of his time out. He held his arms out to make sure he didn’t stumble, although Keith thought he was offering him a hug. Lance had to hold him away from himself as he sat the little down in his lap, making it clear that it wasn’t time for a hug yet. 

 

“Do you know why daddy put you in a time out?” He asked, looking the child in the eye. 

 

Keith nodded quickly, cries still pouring from his mouth as he answered. “I w-was mean t-ta Pidge!” He wailed, never having sounded so remorseful over something in his entire life. 

 

Lance finally allowed himself to smile soothingly at that. “Yes, you were.” He said, causing the boy to only cry harder. He gently bounced his knee in response, hoping to quiet him enough for him to hear him speak. “But that’s in the past now. You’ve been punished, daddy forgives you and Pidge forgives you, okay?” 

 

The little sniffled loudly and nodded, reaching desperately for a third hug. Lance accepted him into his embrace this time and rubbed his back while he calmed down. “No more being mean from now on. Daddy doesn’t want to have to do this again.” He said truthfully. He never liked disciplining Keith. 

 

As the boy’s tears faded, he squirmed in his caregiver’s lap and groaned. His leg was uncomfortable and tight from his time out and it hurt. 

 

Lance noticed his discomfort and picked him up, laying him down on his back on the bed. “Can daddy make your leg feel better?” He asked, wanting the other’s permission before he would stretch it out. Sometimes stretching it would make the pain worse, and in those cases he would opt for a heating pad and a gentle massage. 

 

Keith nodded his consent, so Lance gently grabbed his ankle and pushed his leg towards his head, prompting the little to tell him when to stop. The child gave the word when his toes were practically at his shoulder, his face contorting in slight pain before the position loosened his tense muscles and the pain started to go away. After a minute Lance gently lowered his leg to rest on the bed, then sat Keith up to stretch his outer hip. He finished by laying the boy belly-down and stretching the front of his hip. 

 

After he was done, Keith looked much more relaxed, content even. “Feeling better sweetheart?” The teen cooed, happy that Keith’s mood was improving. A nod from the little caused him to grin as he lifted him into his arms and blew a raspberry on his neck. Keith squealed with giggles at the sensation, and Lance didn’t think he could feel any happier than he was at that moment. 

 

“Do you want to eat your dinner now? Hunk made some yummy food just for you.” The brunette prompted, poking his little in the belly just to hear a few more giggles spill from his lips. 

 

“Ya!” Keith cheered enthusiastically, hungry now that he wasn’t worried anymore. He snuggled into his caregiver’s shoulder, happily resting in the other’s arms as he was carried from the room. 


End file.
